Goulburn's weather is measured by the Bureau of Meteorology at two weather stations, the TAFE campus and the local airport.
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Because of the two different locations, the readings from the two stations can often be quite different.
Now Mayor Bob Kirk has said the lower temperature readings from the Airport Weather Station are so out of kilter with the Goulburn city readings that they are creating a negative impression.
Cr Kirk said there was a prime opportunity to shift the weather station to Leggett Park as the council was already working with the Office of Environment and Heritage to install an air quality monitoring station.
He started the push after noting on several successive weeks a four to five degree difference between temperatures announced on the radio and his own gauge.
"I thought no wonder people go on about Goulburn being minus 10 degrees," he said.
"But it doesn't reflect Goulburn city. We don't live at the airport. I asked Brendan Hollands (corporate and community services director) to pursue it because it's giving us an unnecessary image."
He questioned whether the Bureau of Meteorology was relying more on the airport readings rather than ones at the TAFE.
"I get comments quite regularly about the temperature. It might be just a throwaway line. If this happens, and they move the station, great, but if not, it's not the end of the world. I just see it could help improve our image."
Discussions are underway with the Bureau and the Office of Environment and Heritage.
But a spokesperson from the Bureau of Meteorology said they rely more on the Airport Weather Station for regular updates and that the placement of the weather station out there was important.
"We install anemometers at aerodromes because it gives us a better indication of the wind speeds," the spokesperson said.
The bureau spokesperson said the Airport Weather Station give a better approximation of wind speeds.
"We install anemometers at aerodromes because it gives us a better indication of the wind temperatures and speeds," the spokesperson said.
"The temperature in the towns is usually slightly warmer than at the aerodromes. The town weather stations do not give a true reading of the wind strength because of the structures around them in the city."
He said the bureau used the Goulburn Airport readings more regularly than the TAFE station readings.
The TAFE measurements are manually taken only twice a day, at 9am and 3pm.
"As forecasters, we tend to rely more on the airport readings, which we take automatically every 30 minutes," the spokesperson said.
"For the maximum and minimum temperature readings, the Goulburn TAFE tends to be the more reliable figure for the town, but we tend to rely more heavily on the airport readings."
"With the westerly winds like we are seeing today (May 27) we needed more regular measurements."
The differences in recorded wind speeds between the two stations were apparent on May 28 at 9am: with the Airport reading for wind speed at 44 km/h, while the TAFE station recorded a wind speed of 28 km/h at the same time.
Meantime, the council has agreed to enter into a five-year lease with the latter for the air quality monitoring station at Leggett Park. OEH will pay the council an annual $2500 lease fee and pay for relocation of existing tables and benches and construction of a permanent shelter over the station.
One submission was received during public exhibition that suggested O'Brien Park as a better location.
However, a report stated that it was Crown land, unlike Leggett Park, which was owned by the council. The OEH viewed Leggett Park as more suitable for its technical requirements.
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